Ceritalah | Is Manila’s mayor Isko Moreno the man to replace Rodrigo Duterte as president?
- After 100 days in office, Moreno has become a minor sensation in Philippine politics, having risen from the slums to become mayor of the capital
- Moreno has been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate for 2022, inviting comparisons with Duterte and also Indonesian President Joko Widodo
He was discovered in Tondo by a talent scout at a wake and made a career in film and television. However, he has not forgotten where he came from or the lessons of his upbringing.
“I grew up with criminals, with drug addicts,” he says. “I grew up on the street. I was given a hard life since the day I was born to understand our community today … God has so many ways of teaching you. You’ve seen where I live, and it was hell back then … I didn’t know what my purpose was and I thought, ‘Oh God, when will this end?’ But later only to find out, that I would be mayor. And now I understand the reason.”
And Tondo still remembers him – and loves him.
Gibo, a 50-year old port worker who says he grew up with Moreno in Tondo’s Moriones, jokes that he was there when the latter got his break. Although conditions in Moriones have not immediately improved, Gibo says the yorme, which is street slang for mayor, should maintain his course and avoid being ningas kugon, which means starting strong before fading.
